Athena Cykes: Ace Attorney (AKA Ace Attorney: Scales of Themis)
by Red5T65
Summary: Time for Athena to finally be in the spotlight for once! Get ready for action-packed, emotional cases in this latest fan installment in the Ace Attorney franchise! (Not to be confused with Ace Attorney 7, which is coming out soon)
1. The New Year's Turnabout: Prologue

**A/N: Get ready for the trial of a lifetime with an explosive start to Ace Attorney 7! (It'll be Athena-centric, by the way, though Phoenix gets first case) But what will come from the aftermath… (I don't own Ace Attorney, that's Capcom) Anyone you can't find on the wiki is my OC (Of which there will be** _ **many**_ **) And before you ask, yes, this scenario** _ **is**_ **possible via the "for this one case" clause (I'm going to assume New York has such a clause, given its liberal status (and the fact it's 2029)**

 _ **Athena Cykes: Ace Attorney: (Scales of Themis)**_

 **Turnabout for the New Year**

 **8:59 PM PST (11:59 PM EST)  
** _December 31st, 2028  
_ Times Square

A camera turns on, zooming in on a reporter. "In just a few seconds, that ball up there will drop and 2029 will be upon us! Everybody count down with me now…"

"TEN!"  
"NINE!"  
"EIGHT!"  
"SEVEN!"  
"SIX!"  
"FIVE!"  
"FOUR!"  
"THREE!"  
"TWO!"  
"ONE!"  
"HAPPY NEW-*BZZZT!*"

As the ball drops, a body drops with it, before landing in a broken heap in the middle of Times Square there is screaming, and people begin charging out of the building. The authorities are notified (not that they needed to, they were already on the scene) and reports are already starting to flood in about the murder on New Year's Eve…

* * *

 **9:05 PM PST (12:05 AM EST)  
** _January 1st, 2029  
_ Wright Residence

"DAD!" Trucy belted out from the living room. "What is it, Trucy!?" Phoenix shouted back. That was not the response Maya wanted, as she dragged him over to the couch and let him watch the TV. On screen, a newscaster reported, "Reports are flooding in about the dead body dropped with the ball on New Year's Eve, and the police already suspect homicide. The body has yet to-Wait. Breaking news! The body has been identified as… Justine Courtney! Police suspect the murderer is a certain Raymond Shields, long time friend of Chief Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth, and this will be his first offense on record."

Phoenix stared, jaw wide open. "Wh-wh-WHAT!? I've heard stories from Edgeworth, and Ray's a nice guy! He'd never do anything like murder a judge! For Edgeworth's sake, I hope he isn't prosecuting…" Then his phone rang. "Hello, Phoenix Wright speaking." Ray picked up. "Is this Phoenix? Thank goodness! You gotta defend me! Miles recommended you, and I trust him. Oh, by the way, call me Uncle Ray. You're a friend of his, right?" Phoenix, stunned by the rapid-fire response, simply spluttered out, "Uh, yeah, sure, I'll defend you! When's the trial?" Ray responded, "Let me see… The 4th! You think you can get a case by then?" Phoenix thought. "I'll most certainly try! I know you'd never do that! Mark my words, I'm going to get you that 'Not Guilty' verdict no matter what it takes!" Ray was delighted. "That's the spirit! Let's do this!" With that, he hung up, and Phoenix, now surprisingly exhausted, went to sleep.

* * *

 **9:00 AM PST  
** _January 2nd, 2029  
_ Wright Anything Agency

After getting to the office, Phoenix called Edgeworth to tell him he would be defending Ray Shields. When he did, Edgeworth _immediately_ gave him access to his private jet, as well as booking a room in New York hotel. And that was when Apollo and Athena came in. "BOSS!" Startled at the outburst, Phoenix flinched, before turning around. "What is it, you two?" Apollo started: "We all saw the news! So the question is, you taking the case or not!?" "I most certainly will! Mr. Shields is a friend of Edgeworth, and a friend of Edgeworth is a friend of mine!" Phoenix replied, emphasizing his point. Then Athena asked, "Can one of us be your co-counsel? Or investigative partner? Please…" Phoenix stared. "Sure, but _don't_ trash the jet. It's Edgeworth's, and he'll be _very_ pissed if he finds out. Now, which one of you…" Suddenly, Maya and Pearl burst into the office. "NICK!" shouted Maya as she lunged at him. "This about the case? I'm taking it, don't worry. The real question is who to bring with me…" Then Trucy piped up. "That TV contract is still in effect! I was going to go for a show anyway!" Phoenix processed her words. "Great! Trucy, pack your things! We're headed for the Big Apple!" Trucy pumped her fist. "YAHOO! Thanks, Dad! I'll get on it right away!" With that, the two bolted out of the office, leaving everyone else dumbfounded. Apollo spoke first. "Did he just…" Athena finished. "Yes he did Polly, yes he did." Maya was now very dejected. "Aw… I always wanted to go…"

* * *

 **1:30 PM PST  
** _January 2nd, 2029  
_ Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)

Phoenix and Trucy arrived at LAX and, after explaining to the staff that they were associates of Chief Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth, were directed by an attendant to his jet's hangar. There, they boarded, and after a few minutes, set off for New York.

 **2:15 PM PST (5:15 PM EST)  
** _January 2nd, 2029  
_ Edgeworth's Private Jet

Once onboard, Phoenix and Trucy were left to explore the jet as they saw fit, but after a short once-over, Phoenix realized there really wasn't much. But then Trucy opened up a drawer that was underneath the large flat screen TV, to reveal… a _Steel Samurai_ box set! "Hey, dad! I didn't know Mr. Edgeworth was a _Steel Samurai_ fanboy! Let's watch!" Phoenix groaned. "I've done this too many times with Maya. Don't even-" But before he could finish, the disc was already in, and the episode they were up to was selected. In moments, the theme song was heard throughout the cabin. Phoenix just facepalmed, then flopped onto the couch to watch it with Trucy.


	2. The New Year's Turnabout: Investigation

**A/N: Now, the prologue is over. It's the 3rd now, so get ready for some investigation! What is there to find? I don't own Ace Attorney, that would be Capcom, by the way.**

 **9:00 AM EST  
** _January 3rd, 2029  
_ Times Square (Crime Scene)

Phoenix and Trucy approached the scene. It had been cleaned up, he could tell, though key evidence was still present. He approached a police officer. "Um, sir?" The officer looked up. "What is it? If you just want to look, stand behind the tape." He proceeded to pull out his badge. The officer inspected it. "Oh. Sorry 'bout that. Though that does say California… Eh. 'Pro hac vice' and all that. I can let you through. But _just this once_. Also, it's Officer Renault." Phoenix nodded, before replying, "Phoenix Wright. You may have heard of me. And that's my daughter and assistant, Trucy Wright." Officer Renault nodded, and let the two through.

As it turned out, the actual act of murder had been committed on the roof of One Times Square, just behind the large ball (Which had been helpfully moved out of the way earlier) This left a wide open space for them to use. However, there was one problem: Since Courtney's body had fallen a great distance, any and all autopsies would be almost completely worthless as evidence, and no one knew where she had been on the roof when she had been murdered.

* * *

Phoenix cracked his knuckles. "Alright, let's get to work! Trucy, look by the ball. I'll check around here." "Got it, dad!" Trucy replied, before walking towards the pole. Phoenix himself then looked at the area around him, when he saw a length of rope. "Hm… Better mark that down…"

 **Length of Rope added to Court Record  
** _A length of rope found on the roof. Reason for placement on roof unknown._

He inspected everything he could see, even looking through the air ducts, until finally he found something _very_ strange tucked inside a dumpster: a gavel. But not just any gavel: Judge Courtney's gavel! And not only that, there was a bright red stain on it!

 **Judge Courtney's Gavel added to Court Record  
** _The special gavel used by Judge Courtney. Currently stained with an unknown, but bright red liquid._

"What was that doing here? I mean, aside from the obvious…" Then he realized it. "The killer must've tried to hide it! We just have to check it."

That was when Trucy got back to him. "Dad! I found something!" "Really? What?" he asked, before Trucy dragged him over to show him. "This, dad!" That was when he saw it: A knot of rope clearly from the rope he saw earlier. "Perfect! We know how she got up there!"

 **Court Record Updated  
** _Length of Rope  
_ **Update:** _Rope was tied to flagpole at one point. Knot is still latched to flagpole._

"Looks like this case is pretty open-and-shut! We just have to prove Mr. Shields wasn't there at the time. We'll need the security footage or something." Trucy remarked. Phoenix shook his head. "I don't think so. For one, we don't know _how_ she died. My mind says strangulation, but I found her gavel in a dumpster earlier, and I think there's a bloodstain on it. That would mean blunt force trauma." Trucy sighed. "Well, we'll just have to let forensics confirm it." As if on cue, a person wearing a lab coat walked past, saying something to who they assumed to be the prosecutor of that case. "...can confirm the red substance is blood, and neither the victim's nor defendant's prints are on it." The prosecutor asked a question. "Preliminary findings suggest blunt force trauma, though strangulation is always a possibility…" The Wrights ducked out after that, when they bumped into a coroner. "Oh, sorry about that, sir. We were just leaving." The man paid no attention. "It's fine, son. Dr. Freeman, at your service. You're a lawyer, are you not? I brought two copies of the autopsy with me. You can look it over, but we're still not sure."

 **Autopsy added to Court Record  
** _The victim's autopsy. She appears to have died of blunt force trauma. Estimated time of death: 11:30 PM_

 **Court Record Updated  
** _Judge Courtney's Gavel  
_ **Update:** _The defendant's prints were not found on it. Neither were the victim's._

Once the coroner was out of earshot, Phoenix shouted, "This is great! We've got everything we need! Aside from the security footage, anyway. But we can ask one of the guards if we can look at it eventually." Trucy was bubbling over with pure glee. "You go, dad! Now let's get that footage ASAP!" With that the two went over to an on-duty security guard.

* * *

 **10:30 EST  
** _January 3rd, 2029  
_ One Times Square Security Camera Monitoring Station

After meeting a friendly guard and presenting his badge, Phoenix and Trucy went inside the room containing all the footage from previous days. When they asked if there were any roof or roof access cameras, the guard said, "There's just the one in the roof stairs. It'll be in the top-left cabinet, R-1 and if you're looking for late night December 31st, 2028, which I'm pretty sure you are, it'll be folder DEC-31, disc 4." With that, they nodded, before heading into the large room and locating the correct cabinet, then, after some work, finding the right folder and disk. Once they did, they popped it in, and got to what they thought was the correct timestamp, and lo and behold: At no point did Raymond Shields ever head up to the roof (Judge Courtney had gone up at 11:00 PM, and an unknown person went up at 11:10 PM)

 **Security Footage added to Court Record  
** _The security footage from the night of the murder. The defendant was not seen going up and an unknown person had gone up at 11:10 PM. The camera was not tampered with._

With all that noted, Phoenix and Trucy left to take the time to build their defense. On the way back, Phoenix began: "So, we know that Ray wasn't up there, and that blunt force trauma is very likely to be the cause of death. That just leaves that third person we saw. They're almost definitely the culprit. And whoever it is, it can't be self-defense, since that would mean Judge Courtney had assaulted them first, presumably with her gavel. But no prints were on it except for, presumably, the true culprit. So at best, they're going to get manslaughter. At worst, second degree murder." Trucy mulled it over. "You'll have to account for everything, though. You said it yourself, dad: She could've been strangled instead. But probably not. Let's try practicing it later, OK?" Phoenix nodded. "We are definitely going to do that. Now, what are we going to do in the meantime?" Trucy responded, "Let's think about that _later_ , dad. Come on!"

 **A/N: Thanks to some loose lips, Phoenix and Trucy have all they need to find the** _ **real**_ **culprit in court tomorrow! But will they be able to in a day? Find out next time!**


	3. The New Year's Turnabout: Trial

**A/N: It's time for Phoenix to face the court (with Trucy!) But who's prosecuting? Read on to find out! I don't own Ace Attorney, by the way. That would be Capcom.**

 **9:00 AM EST  
** _January 4th, 2029  
_ New York State Supreme Court Building, Courtroom No. 5

Phoenix and Trucy arrived at the defense's bench at 9:00 AM on the dot, and the prosecutor came in soon after. Said prosecutor identified themselves as Prosecutor Laura Tenerife. There was a *BANG!* and all three turned towards the current judge (or so Phoenix thought. When asked what to refer to them as, the judge replied, "Justice Benjamin Hanover" when not in court) With that, Justice Hanover announced, "The trial for Raymond Shields shall now commence. Prosecutor Tenerife, you may begin your opening statement." Tenerife nodded, then after looking through her notes, began: "The defendant was reported to have been on the roof at the same time as the victim, and, after a struggle, appears to have beat them to death with their own gavel. These are the facts." Phoenix quietly shook his head. _You're clearly overlooking a lot of things. Or maybe you're not, and you want me to slip up. Well, I'm certainly not going to!_ The justice, nodding once more, said, "You may call your first witness." "The prosecution calls Jackson Hyde to the stand." With that, the bailiff brought in Mr. Hyde. "Witness, please state your name and occupation for the record." Mr. Hyde nodded, then responded, "Jackson R. Hyde. I'm a janitor at One Times Square." Tenerife then said, "Alright, please testify as to what you saw that night." "Alright, if you want it, here it is, in all its glory:"

 _ **Witness Testimony**_

 _"I was just going upstairs to do a final check for trash on the roof."_

 _"When I get up there, I see this lady with a gavel, and some guy in a fedora shouting at her."_

 _"Suddenly, the guy grabs the gavel, and smacks her over the head with it!"_

 _"I didn't see the rest of it, but next thing I know, her body's sprawled out in Times Square!"_

Justice Hanover nodded, then began: "If there are no objections, the court accepts this wit-"

 _ **OBJECTION!**_

Stunned, everyone turned to Phoenix, who had his finger pointed in his signature pose. There was another *BANG!* and the justice bellowed, "ORDER! ORDER IN THIS COURT!" That calmed everyone down, allowing him to begin. "Mr. Wright, what are you objecting to, exactly?" Phoenix began. "Well, Your Honor, there is a clear contradiction: The witness mentioned a 'guy in a fedora,' correct? Assuming that is the defendant, that can't be the case, as shown by…

 **-The lack of the defendant's fingerprints**

 **-The rope**

 **-** _ **The security footage**_

 _ **TAKE THAT!**_

Seeing as they were now expecting it, the gallery didn't say anything. That allowed the justice to ask, "And what exactly _is_ that, Mr. Wright?" Phoenix nodded with a smirk. "I'm glad you asked, Your Honor. This is the security footage from that night. It was not tampered with in any way. At no point does this camera ever see the defendant!" Trucy giggled happily. "You go, dad! The justice nodded. "Well then, Mr. Hyde. It seems you shall have to amend your testimony or make a new one. Which will it be?" Mr. Hyde was sweating a little now, and he mumbled, "I guess I have to testify again…"

 _ **Witness Testimony**_

 _"So I admit it. I was the only guy up there."_

 _"But I didn't mean to kill her! She attacked first!"_

 _"It was self-defense, honest!"_

Justice Hanover nodded. "Well, Mr. Wright? Do you have any evidence to the contrary?" "As a matter of fact, I do, Your Honor. And it is…"

 **-The rope**

 **-** _ **The lack of the victim's fingerprints**_

 **-The footage**

 _ **TAKE THAT!**_

Mr. Hyde made an audible "HURK!" and was now trembling slightly. Tenerife gaped. "DAMMIT! HOW'D YOU KNOW!?" Phoenix laughed. "Simple, really. I overheard forensics!" The prosecutor facepalmed, exhausted. But then she snapped her fingers. "Well, clearly Mr. Hyde can be charged with second-degree murder. But that still doesn't explain how she-"

 _ **HOLD IT!**_

The gallery, shocked, descended into chaos. Justice Hanover proceeded to bang his gavel over and over, shouting, "ORDER! I WILL HAVE ORDER!" After another minute, the gallery calmed down, and Phoenix could continue. "How did she get up there, you ask? Simple. She was…"

 **-** _ **Tied to the pole**_

 **-Climbed onto the ball**

 **-Clung to the pole**

"TIED TO THE POLE!" Prosecutor Tenerife gaped. "THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE! ABSOLUTELY UNACCEPTABLE! IT'S INCONCEIVABLE! I CANNOT ACCEPT THIS! NOOOOOOOOOOO!" *breath* "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Suddenly, there was another *BANG!* and Justice Hanover boomed once more: "IF I DO NOT HAVE ORDER, I WILL THROW YOU OUT OF THIS COURT! PERMANENTLY!" Trucy began laughing uncontrollably. "Dad, that was _amazing!_ You got her good, you know!" Phoenix smirked. "Of course I did, Truce! I'm Phoenix _Wright_ after all!" Then Justice Hanover began one final time: "Mr. Wright, what evidence is there to prove that?" Phoenix simply said, "Well, Your Honor, it should be obvious by now. She was clearly tied using…"

 **-The gavel**

 **-The footage**

 **-** _ **The rope**_

 _ **TAKE THAT!**_

"THIS ROPE!" Justice Hanover nodded. "Well, Mr. Wright. The court accepts this evidence." Then he turned to face the court. "With that, I pronounce Raymond Shields…"

 _ **NOT GUILTY!**_

The gallery erupted into cheers, and Phoenix bowed, and Trucy pulled out a heap of confetti from her magic panties and, with Mr. Hat's help, tossed it into the air. With that, they left, leaving Prosecutor Tenerife seething, and Jackson Roosevelt Hyde to prison, where he would be staying for a rather long time (He did murder a judge, after all)

 **A/N: To any New Yorkers reading this: Jackson Hyde's name is a pun, and his middle initial? Well, that should be obvious. To any non-New Yorkers: Check a map of the New York Subway some time. Specifically Queens. You'll see what I mean.**


	4. Turnabout Reset: Prologue

**A/N: Wright Anything Agency is about to get** _ **another**_ **case at the space center! (They really need to up security at that place!) And for a game all about Athena, well… you can imagine what** _ **that's**_ **going to be like. I don't own Ace Attorney, that would be Capcom.**

 **Turnabout Reset**

 **3:47 PM  
** _March 15th, 2029  
_ Cykes Memorial Space Center, Robotics Lab

PONCO and CLONCO were mulling about with a couple technicians when a stranger burst into the room. This stranger proceeded to take down the technicians, before hacking into the system to steal some classified files. While he was doing so, however, something clicked in CLONCO. Without warning, it rapidly disassembled PONCO, before whipping out a very sharp tool and stabbing the would-be spy in the stomach, and running off to get decontaminated.

 **5:20 PM  
** _March 15th, 2029  
_ Wright Anything Agency

Athena was just about to close up the office when suddenly, the phone rang. She immediately picked up. "Hello, Athena Cykes speaking." The caller recognized her immediately. "Athena? That you? Thank the stars! I've been accused of murder!" Her eyes widened. "WHAT!? Also, how do you know me?" The caller explained. "You remember Mr. Bight, right?" Athena nodded. "The techie who made me those headphones? Of course!" They continued. "That's me! Now do you want to defend me or not?" Athena barely even stopped to think. "Absolutely! I still owe you one from all those years ago!" Mr. Bight laughed. "Great! I'll see you later!" With that, he hung up, and Athena ran back to her apartment. She was determined to get up bright and early the next day to find out everything she could. But she realized something: "I really should find a partner… but who? Apollo, the boss, and Ms. Fey are all back in Khura'in, and Trucy still has her shows… Oh, I know! Pearl! She'd totally do it!"

 **6:00 PM  
** _March 15th, 2029  
_ Cykes Residence

As soon as she got home, Athena whipped out her phone and texted Pearl.

 _Hey Pearls, u wanna help me with a case?_

In no time, she got a reply.

 _Yeah, Thena! totes!_

Before she could respond, Pearl added:

 _Gotta check w/elders. Brb_

Athena finally responded,

 _Oh, right. Ms. Fey's not back yet…_

When Pearl came back, she said,

 _Good news! I can go!_

Athena pumped her fist in the air.

 _Woohoo! Come by the office tomorrow!_

With that, she proceeded to do her normal nightly ritual (after finishing dinner, of course) and, eventually, went to sleep.


	5. Turnabout Reset: Investigation

**A/N: Time for the two to find out exactly what's going on here! But again, what is there to find in the first place?**

 **9:30 AM  
** _March 16th, 2029  
_ Wright Anything Agency

Athena opened the door to the office to see Pearl already sitting on the couch. "Hey, Pearls! C'mon! We gotta get to the Space Center before they shut us out completely!" At this, Pearl hopped up, and the two hailed a taxi, and hopped in.

The driver was friendly, though he did ask a couple questions about Pearl's outfit, which she respectfully answered. Then he asked, "Why're you two headed for it today? It's closed, isn't it?" Athena explained, "Well, I'm a defense attorney and she's a friend of mine who wanted to help out. I got this case because of some personal reasons." The driver, hearing this, responded, "Wait, aren't you that girl from the UR-1 incident or something?" Athena stared. "Um, yes, why?" He continued. "I thought you looked familiar… That was when I remembered: Your picture was all over the news! Well, pleasure to meet you, Ms. Cykes." Athena, still a little stunned, mumbled out a short, "And you too, sir."

* * *

 **10:30 AM  
** _March 16th, 2029  
_ Cykes Memorial Space Center Robotics Lab (Crime Scene)

After a large amount of hassle (security had seemingly improved as of late, but by how much?) The two reached the area marked off with crime scene tape. There they saw the victim sprawled out on the floor. A familiar-looking detective approached them. "Hey there, you two! Wasn't expecting either of you to show up, to be honest." Pearl grinned. "Hi, Gummy! How's it going?" Gumshoe was about to answer when he stopped. He turned to Pearl and said, "You aren't trying to get info out of me, now are you? Because that won't work, no siree!" Pearl pouted. "Oh come on, Gummy! We were just asking if we could take a look, is all!" Gumshoe calmed down after that. "Oh. Whoops. Well, I guess I can let you in. Though you will have an unfair advantage…" he trailed off. Athena was confused then it clicked. "Oh. Right. I did live here for a while." With that, Gumshoe let them in, and they were free to explore.

Once inside, Pearl immediately ran off to the disassembly table. Athena winced. "Glad I'm not the one over there… Yeesh. I do _not_ want to go through that again…" Shaking her head to clear her mind, she decided to take a look at the console. That was when she noticed something. "Is that a flash drive? What's _that_ doing here? I don't think it belongs to any of the employees…"

 **Flash Drive added to Court Record**

 _An unidentified flash drive. Don't know why it's there, but I can guess who brought it in._

Then she realized something: "Clearly _someone_ wanted to steal some files for some reason. But why from here? I mean, PONCO and CLONCO aren't that complicated… Oh wait. Widget!"

 **Court Record Updated**

 _Flash Drive_

 **Update:** _Appears to have been used to steal classified information, presumably about Widget._

After moving away from the console, she noticed a pile of parts next to the robot reassembler. She recognized them as bits of PONCO.

 **PONCO's Parts added to Court Record**

 _The components of PONCO. The question is, why was she disassembled anyway? And more importantly, by who?_

With that, her half of the area was nearly completely combed through, when she spotted something rather strange: A trail of small, red stains leading to the decontamination facility. "Is that… blood?" she murmured.

 **Bloodstain Trail added to Court Record**

 _A line of bloodstains leading to the decontamination facility. Why are they going there?_

Athena was in the middle of thinking about it, when Pearl ran up to her. "I couldn't find anything on that side. What did you get?" Athena showed her the notes she had made. Pearl read through them. "Ah. Yeah, those stains do seem a _little_ out of place. What's that decontamination thing for, anyway?" Athena replied, "Cleaning off PONCO and CLONCO… wait a minute! I think I know who did this!"

 **Court Record Updated**

 _PONCO's Parts_

 **Update:** _Rapidly disassembled by a malfunctioning CLONCO to prevent her from recording his efforts to defend the facility._

 _Bloodstain Trail_

 **Update:** _Blood from CLONCO's defensive 'tools.' CLONCO needed to clean up, after all._

Pearl stared. "Not so loud, Athena! C'mon, let's talk about it back at the office!" Athena, realizing her mistake, chuckled lightly. "Whoops. But yeah, we should." With that, the two left the Space Center, and went back to the office. It was nearly lunchtime, anyway.

* * *

 **1:05 PM  
** _March 16th, 2029  
_ Wright Anything Agency

When the two got back to the office (after getting burgers) they sat down to discuss what they knew. "Alright, so Mr. Bight was one of the technicians in the room at the time. But even without fingerprint evidence, I think I know who did it." Pearl thought some more about it, then said, "It was CLONCO, wasn't it?" Athena nodded. "Yep. I think it went like this: Our victim went in wanting to find something on Widget or something. But when he burst in, Mr. Bight was already there. So they knocked him out, probably after a fight, but something went wrong during the hack: CLONCO bugged out. I remember Aura adding in some defensive mechanisms into the two of them, so that _does_ make sense. But before CLONCO killed anyone, he disassembled PONCO so there wouldn't be any witnesses. Then he ran off to be decontaminated because he had blood on him. By the time he went in, Mr. Bight woke up, and moved PONCO's parts into the corner, where I found them. That was when the arrest must've happened." Pearl stared. "You got all _that_ from some stains, a broken robot, and a flash drive? Wow." Athena shrugged. "What? I _lived_ there. I know what Aura did, and I know their programming. Our case is rock solid. There's no way we can lose!"

 **A/N: Well, maybe not that much evidence, but still: The reasoning should be enough. Anyway, how long do you think it'll take to prove this? Review with your answer.**


	6. Turnabout Reset: Trial

**A/N: Time for the trial to start? But will a verdict come out today, or will it have to wait for tomorrow? Read on, and find out! I don't own Ace Attorney, that would be Capcom.**

 **12:00 PM  
** _March 17th, 2029  
_ Courtroom No. 3

Athena and Pearl walked into the now rather familiar courtroom, and saw the prosecutor take his position on the opposite side. They heard him say, "Hello, Ms. Cykes. I am Prosecutor Sebastian Debeste, and I am Debeste at my profession, no doubt about it!" Athena facepalmed. "Well, were you taught by Edgeworth, at least?" Sebastian nodded. "Indeed. Though he may have mentored me, no one can surpass my skill, for I am… Debeste!"

That was when the judge came up to his bench. "Thank you, Prosecutor Debeste." *Ahem!* "The trial for Sond Bight shall now commence!" *BANG!* "Thank you, Your Honor. Two days ago, at precisely 3:46 PM, the victim, Jacob Cosmos, was stabbed to death in the Cykes Memorial Space Center's Robot Management Facility. Those are the facts." Athena and Pearl looked at each other. _Jacob Cosmos? Any relation to Yuri Cosmos?_ The judge nodded, before saying, "The prosecution may call its first witness." Sebastian blanked. "Your Honor, if I may… There _weren't_ any witnesses to the murder. However, there were two individuals who saw everything just _before_ the murder. The prosecution would like to call the first one up now." With that, a technician was brought to the stand. Sebastian turned to them. "Witness, state your name and occupation for the record." The technician nodded, then said, "Ryan Cranklead, Junior Technician for Cykes Memorial Space Center." Sebastian nodded. "Witness, please testify as to what you saw that afternoon.

 _ **Witness Testimony**_

" _I was minding my own business, looking through some footage PONCO had captured earlier at the console on the desk.."_

" _Suddenly, this guy bursts into the room!"_

" _Before I know it, Mr. Bight is on top of him!"_

" _I yelled at him to stop, but he didn't hear me!"_

" _I blacked out after that."_

" _When I woke up, the guy was dead, and Mr. Bight was right there next to him."_

" _I called 911 immediately."_

The judge spoke once more. "The defense may begin their cross examination."

 _Cross Examination_

" _I was minding my own business, looking through some footage PONCO had captured earlier at the console on the desk.."_

 _ **HOLD IT!**_

The judge looked at Athena. "Ms. Cykes, do you have a contradiction to point out?" Athena placed her hands on her hips. Then she said, "As a matter of fact, I do, Your Honor. You see, Mr. Cranklead couldn't have been at that desk because…"

 **-** _ **The desk was occupied by someone else**_

 **-You weren't there**

"Someone else was already at the desk!" The judge stared. "And how would you know this? This man said he was a technician, clearly he should have access!" Athena wagged her finger. "Nope. He said he was a _junior_ technician, remember? And I know for a fact that only senior techies are allowed to look through PONCO and CLONCO's files." The judge stopped. "Well, then, if he wasn't, who was?" Athena thought for a moment. "Well, obviously, it was…"

 **-The victim**

 **-** _ **Mr. Bight**_

"Mr. Bight!" she shouted triumphantly. Sebastian stared. Then he shouted, with all his energy,

 _ **OBJECTION!**_

"The defense is _clearly_ at an unfair advantage, seeing as they lived there for most of their life!" The judge banged his gavel. "OVERRULED! Do not complain about circumstances, or I _will_ give you a penalty the next time!" Sebastian slumped back into his seat.

Once that was settled, Athena decided to request something. "Your Honor, I think we have to break protocol for this trial." The judge gaped. "What do you mean?" Athena continued. "Well, as Prosecutor Debeste already mentioned, there are only two non-defendant witnesses. He called one to the stand. The other, however…"

 **-Is currently powered down**

 **-Is corrupted**

 **-** _ **Is in pieces**_

"IS IN PIECES!" The gallery erupted into chaos. The whole courtroom seemed to shake. "ORDER! ORDER IN THE COURT! MS. CYKES! WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!?" Athena responded with, "I'm glad you asked, Your Honor. You see, the other would-be witness is PONCO, who was disassembled, as shown by…"

 **-The stains**

 **-The flash drive**

 **-** _ **Her parts**_

 _ **TAKE THAT!**_

"Her parts! They were found beside the desk mentioned earlier!" With that, the judge banged his gavel once more in protest, before demanding, "So what do you suggest we do?" Athena smirked. "Actually, there _is_ one more witness. I'd like to call CLONCO to the stand!" The judge nodded. "Well, I suppose we must. But where is CLONCO currently?" Pearl responded, "In the decontamination facility!" Sebastian glared at them. "And how would _you_ know?" Athena chuckled. "Simple, really. I'd like to present a new theory: that CLONCO was the murderer!" The gallery descended into chaos once more, and the judge banged his gavel so hard the bench shook. "ORDER! ORDER, I SAY! I WILL HAVE ORDER IN THIS COURT!" Then, Sebastian asked, "And what evidence is there to prove _that_?" Athena responded immediately. "What, you're telling me you _didn't_ see it? It was everywhere!" Sebastian glared. "What _is_ 'it'?" "The…"

 **-The flash drive**

 **-** _ **The bloodstains**_

 _ **TAKE THAT!**_

"The bloodstains, of course!" Sebastian gaped. "WHAT!?" Athena giggled "Yep! And why would CLONCO even try to murder someone? He was malfunctioning!" Everyone's jaw dropped. "MS. CYKES! HOW IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE!?" Athena replied, "Well, it's all because of…"

 **-PONCO's parts**

 **-** _ **The flash drive**_

 _ **TAKE THAT!**_

"THIS! The flash drive used to hack into the console!" There was yet more shouting, and the judge decided it was high time for a recess. "EVERYBODY! I AM MANDATING A 10 MINUTE RECESS!" With that, everyone rushed out, as an angry judge was a _scary_ judge.

 **2:15 PM**

 _March 17th, 2029_

Defendant Lobby No. 3

"That was crazy, Athena!" Pearl blurted out while they waited. Mr. Bight looked at them. "Well, Athena, I knew you were always a spunky girl! There's no way you can lose now!" Athena, of course, hadn't _actually_ calmed down, and promptly collapsed from exhaustion. "Athena? Athena! Oh no, not now… Come on Athena, get up! Mr. Bight needs you!" But Athena was well and truly out of it. Luckily, a bailiff ran over, and, thankfully, resuscitated her, though she did start complaining of a massive headache.

 **2:25 PM**

 _March 17th, 2029_

Courtroom No. 3

When the court reconvened, the judge was quick to get back into the discussion. "As you were saying, Ms. Cykes, suppose that flash drive _was_ used to access the files stored on the console. Why would that cause CLONCO to malfunction?" Athena explained, "Well, suppose that during the hack a file got corrupted. I happen to know that CLONCO is not good enough at dealing with that to handle one, and while trying to, his 'defense protocol' triggered. That involves a knife, which, presumably, the victim was stabbed with." The judge nodded. "Well, where would that knife be? And, for that matter, does it even exist?" Athena nodded. "I can show it to you!" Sebastian stared. "Oh, really? And how are you-" Suddenly Widget blurted out, "ME!" Athena flushed red with embarrassment, but continued, "Widget here has the blueprints stored in his database. I just have to find it… there!" With that, a blue screen popped up, with CLONCO's blueprints displayed on it. "Now to enlarge the image…" Within moments, the blueprints were clearly visible on a screen brought in by a bailiff. "Alright, Pearl, hold him for a sec? Thanks!" With that, she walked up to the screen. "These-" she pointed, "are CLONCO's blueprints. And right here-" she pointed to a compartment, "is that knife I was talking about." So, Sebastian…"

 _ **TAKE THAT!**_

With that, the judge boomed, "I think we have reached a verdict! I declare the defendant, Sond Bight, as well as the true culprit CLONCO…"

 _ **NOT GUILTY**_

Sebastian shouted in protest,

 _ **OBJECTION!**_

"How is CLONCO _not_ guilty!?" Athena stopped him. "Well, he was malfunctioning, remember? I think that counts as 'Not guilty by plea of insanity,' right? So there you go." With that, the gallery erupted into cheers, and Athena and Pearl practically _skipped_ out of the courtroom to celebrate the acquittal at the agency.

 **A/N: Athena gets things done quick, it seems! And yeah, yeah she may have gone a** _ **bit**_ **overboard, but then again, I think everyone did a little that trial. Though she** _ **didn't**_ **use Widget's main feature, which you might find interesting. Don't worry, she will next time.**


End file.
